Elementary School

Here's what I think children should be doing during those valuable elementary school years:

Kindergarten

• Memorize multiplication tables 1 through 12. I used to get up at 6 AM every day and write each multiplication over and over again until 6:30 AM. Not only did this teach me the math, but it also taught me a great work ethic, what many kids nowadays are lacking. Working in the morning, at least for me, proves to be much better than working in the day or night. I still memorize in the morning because I remember much more than trying to memorize in any other time period of the day.
• Read! It doesn't matter what genre a child reads, but he or she must read. I focused mostly on the Junie B. Jones series by Barbara Park and other simple chapter books to get me started. Click here for Movie and Book Lists
• Practice writing in a journal. I was going through my diaries/journals the other day and I noticed that there were entries written from 1998 back in my wee little years. Sure, they were small and only about a paragraph or two, but the ideas that stemmed from those entries have transformed into creative writing pieces. Writing becomes boring for a lot of teenagers because they have no idea where to start and even if they do, they write carelessly. Writing quickly is not the same as writing intelligently. If children could love to write when they are young, they will have a huge advantage in high school.
• Make use of the computer! When I was in kindergarten, knowing how to use a computer was a rare occurrence compared to now where I've seen two year olds playing games online. However, I used the computer to play educational games and draw Pokemon creatures on paint (hence my continuing fascination with Adobe photoshop and editing my own pictures and movies). I find that too many kids have Wiis, Playstations, and Xboxs to play only "entertainment" games. In my opinion, these games should not be the primary way kids learn to use computer software. They can be fun, but their use must be limited. Click here to view education software                Click here to view software lists

1st Grade

• In terms of math, I had learned my basics (addition, subtraction, multiplication, division).
• Most of the academic comprehension I developed came from the infamous books, gigantic, all in one subject books that we found at Sam's Club. They encompassed math, writing, reading, social studies, and science and I would do a page of each subject every day until I finished the entire book. The last time I checked, these books were still available at the local Sam's Club (good for them!).
• To supplement the academics with a little bit of fun, I frequently battled my brother in Brain Quest. They can be found at Sam's Club or Barnes and Nobles: Click here to purchase Brain Quest. For those not familiar with the game, they are basically cards that have trivia questions on the front and answers on the back. While one person asks the question, the other answers. The game is very easy to use and can be great with siblings on a road trip or vacation.
• Recommended for reading is the Magic Tree House Series by Mary Pope Osborne. Click here for book lists
• Kids are sometimes fascinated by things that usually cannot be provided by parents because it's simply not feasible. I loved playing with doll houses and cooking sets but no matter how many toys you buy, you can't have them all. A great remedy for this situation is to take them to the Science Museum of Minnesota or the Minnesota Children's Museum. Both places are relatively inexpensive, offer fun for the whole family, and have things that wouldn't normally be found in a house. I've watched so many Omnitheater films at the Science Museum that I still enjoy going there and seeing more.

2nd Grade

• I took a couple of art classes through community education. Now, I know that most parents think that art isn't considered the most "valuable" subject, but these were the only available classes for gifted students at that time and any class is better than no class. Don't be afraid to ask children what interests they have besides the normal academics. I keep getting GREAT community education brochures in the mail and some of the activities in there are perfect to get children motivated to learn while they are doing fun things. Click here for District 196's Community Education Programs From sports to dance to cooking, learning doesn't come from only straightforward academic subjects but also extracurriculars.
• In class, my teacher would give me easy reader books like the ones that had silly little phrases that rhymed: See Jane. See Jane run. See Bob. See Bob run. See Jane and Bob run. --- Yeah, I was way too advanced for that stuff, so I read and competed in an event called Book Buddy Blast. It was an internal competition in my elementary school where a book list would be distributed in the summer and in the middle of fall, groups of four students would compete against other groups in their own grade levels answering the questions in front of a school wide audience. Alas, my team always came in second, but I will never forget how fun it was to collaborate and share with others what I learned through the books. Click here for book lists 
• I practiced a lot of typing and writing to improve my word processing skills. Getting easy beginner software is a must for typing. Out of the many that I've used, I've found that Mavis Beacon is the best one. She starts from the very beginning and then goes at a pace determined by the user's goals. She also helps the typist move forward without boredom by implementing fun, user-friendly typing games. Click here to download a free trial of Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing Deluxe 17 Software Now, I can proudly state that I've gone from 0 Words Per Minute to 70 Words Per Minute. Thanks Mavis!

3rd Grade

• Kids should start to get familiar with writing speeches. I remember doing a month long project on a country (India) where I had to research, write a report, and give a speech. Long term projects are more advisable than short term projects because at this stage, children should learn how to piece together different concepts that they learn. Public speaking and presentations are vital in improving communication between peers and elders. It will also give students the confidence that they can speak before an audience. (Click here to improve public speaking)
• Having sharp and quick math skills is also important. Repetition and practice is key. I would practice long division and harder multiplication by doing sheets with 50 problems and then timing myself to record my improvement. There are multiple worksheet generators online that are easy for parents to use. Click here for worksheet generators
• Another great activity to sharpen the mind is to PLAY OUTSIDE! Playing outdoor games gives physical exercise and is great for making friendships. Remember, as much as it's advantageous to stay inside and study, it is also good to have a fun group of friends to play with. I remember roller blading, ice skating, playing four square, and so much more.
• So many children at this age rely on Nickelodean or Disney for their visual entertainment, but these shows devote themselves to nothing more than consumerism, appearance, and trivial friendships. I highly recommend the shows that I mostly grew up on - Arthur, Zoboomafoo, Cyberchase, Zoom. All of these appeared on PBS and are still airing today because of their incredible popularity.

4th Grade

• This is the inevitable year where kids begin to realize that they are going through the first steps of that "dangerous" word, adolescence. They are not pre-teens yet, but it doesn't mean that they don't understand the more complex situations around them. Books that can help them get through things that they just quite can't understand are the ones in The Chicken Soup for the Soul series. Each book contains published mini-stories that explore ideal, values, morals, hurts, and other life lessons. They have around a 100 titles, including special editions just for kids. Click here to see a list of all Chicken Soup titles
• Fourth grade was a year full of current events for me, primarily because of the unfortunate September 11 attack. With news about Afghanistan being updated every second, I found myself more interested in current events and politics, since the previous year had also been the 2000 Presidential Election. I loved my teacher for showing us 30 minutes of news every day in which we had to take notes and our grade was based on how well we comprehended. This was not watered down "kids" news. She was playing CNN, MSNBC, and nightly news. Another activity I loved was to read the Time for Kids articles. In fact, I was so inpsired by them that I even wrote my response to an article detailing a woman's freedom of expression and it was published in the magazine! Time for Kids isn't that popular, but this early experience has made me continue reading TIME, The New Yorker, and Newsweek. My brother even had one of his questions for Business Tycoon, Ted Turner, answered by the man himself. Click here to see my published comment Click here to see Sylesh's published comment You can even apply to be one of Time for Kids Magazine's reporter by sending in a research article of your own. I sent one in about reform in the school district and more funding, but alas, I wasn't selected : ( But I know that other children can pursue the same goal and even succeed! How cool would it be to meet the president in 4th grade?

5th Grade

• As many of the children I know will be entering 5th grade, this is a pivotal moment for UMTYMP preparation. Many parents are confused by what exactly this program is, its difficulty to get in, and the challenging course curriculum. In a nutshell, UMTYMP is an advanced math program for 5th - 12th graders offered through the University of Minnesota. They take around 150 kids every year and offer the test to get in twice a year in March and April. Anyone from grades 5 through 7 can sign up to take the test for a registration fee. Kids are expected to thoroughly know pre-algebra before they take the test because after they get in, they learn Algebra I, Algebra II, Geometry, and Pre-Calculus for the high school component. To continue to the calculus component, kids must take another qualifying exam and pass. If they do, they can continue on to learn Calculus I, Calculus II, Calculus III, and advanced topics. For more information, click on the UMTYMP math link under the Math Links sections.
• I relied on the Pre-Algebra McGraw Hill books that can be found in Barnes and Nobles to help me prepare for the test. These books not only teach concepts but they also contain a lot of practice problems so kids can time themselves for accuracy. Accuracy and timeliness are very important for the exam since there are 50 questions to be solved in 20 minutes when most of the questions are multi-tiered.
• UMTYMP is a division of MathCEP, the School for Mathematics Center for Educational Progams. They offer other programs like Saturday Enrichment and Summer Enrichment that are also fun to check out.
• In my Gifted and Talented class, we learned about topics that most students don't touch until high school. Some of the units we did were on the brain, emotions, countries, plays, and Nobel prize winners. For example, for the brain unit, we got to closely learn about the anatomy of the brain, dissect a sheep's brain, and think about how our behaviors are affected by psychological and physical effects. It is so important in the globalization of the world that students know that countries are interconnected and that they depend on each other. We formed teams of four and played a game called Caravans against each other. As we traveled the world, we needed to acquire points to replenish our supplies, room rent, and food. The only we could get the points was to write reports, do research, or present information about the countries we traveled to and based on the quality of the work, we were awarded more or less points.
• I know I've skipped past some of the reading comprehension and writing stuff, but I want to bring that back again. At this point, students should know how to use Microsoft Office tools to aid their presentations. I was well versed in PowerPoint, Word, and Excel, which made homework easier for me. Instead of writing a homework assignment by hand, try encouraging them to type it up and print it out. It's neater, easier, and advanced!